Advisory Group on Mercury-Impaired Waters

Information about the meetings, recommendations, and members of the advisory group to the commission on issues related to surface waters impaired due to mercury in edible fish.

About the Advisory Group
Membership
Group Findings and Commission Discussion
Information Supplied by Participants
Meetings and Schedule
Meeting Summaries and Presentations
Related Documents
Sign Up for News Alerts
For More Information

About the Advisory Group

This open-participation group, using science and technology as critical drivers, advises the Commissioners regarding mercury-impaired water bodies in Texas. The primary task of the Advisory Group is to develop recommendations for addressing those impairments. The group has been asked to include multiple options in its final recommendations to the commission. The TCEQ will consider the group’s recommendations when formulating policy.

Surface waters classified as mercury-impaired are placed on the Texas 303(d) list, which identfies water bodies that do not meet standards for water quality, as required by Section 303(d) of the federal Clean Water Act. Seventeen water bodies in Texas are impaired due to mercury in fish tissue; see fish consumption advisories issued by the Department of State Health Services.

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Membership

Membership of the advisory group is open; anyone may attend and participate fully.

The TCEQ sent a letter on June 13, 2008, inviting the participation of approximately 150 people who represent a balanced cross section of people from industry, academia, public and environmental interest groups, and government.

The commissioners’ goal is to have participants in this group that represent a balanced cross section of parties. However, in order to meet that goal, a balanced group of individuals must choose to participate. The commissioners encourage everyone who is interested to come and participate in this process.

Summaries of all meetings will be made available on this Web page.

Participant List (PDF. Help with PDF.)

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Group Findings and Commission Discussion

At their agenda meeting on August 12, 2009, the commissioners considered a summary of the advisory group's findings (PDF) as Item 11.

See the archived webcast of the discussion .

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Information Supplied by Participants

Work group participants submitted the information below to provide or support recommendations for addressing the state’s mercury-impaired waters. The documents are provided as PDFs. (Help with PDF.)

Caddo Lake Institute (CLI)
References attached to submission from Caddo Lake Institute
- Model-Based Analysis And Tracking Of Airborne Mercury Emissions To Assist in Watershed Planning . Watershed Branch (4503-T) Office of Wetlands, Oceans, and Watersheds U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20460
- Health Place. 2006 Jun;12(2):203-9. Abstract. Environmental mercury release, special education rates, and autism disorder: an ecological study of Texas. Palmer RF, Blanchard S, Stein Z, Mandell D, Miller C., University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio Department of Family and Community Medicine, 7703 Floyd Curl Drive, San Antonio, Texas 78229-3900, USA. E-mail palmer@uthscsa.edu
American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity (ACCE)
Association of Electric Companies of Texas (AECT)
McMurry, Heather; El Paso, Texas
Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD)
Portland Cement Association
US Environmental Protection Agency, Region 6 (EPA)
Texas Association of Business (TBA)
Texas Chemical Council (TCC)
Texas Oil and Gas Association (TxOGA)

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Meetings and Schedule

Meetings of all advisory groups to the TCEQ are held publicly and are open to everyone. No further meetings are scheduled for this group, pending commission review of the group’s information at the commissioners’ meeting on August 12, 2009.

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Meeting Summaries and Presentations

The following documents are provided as PDFs unless otherwise noted. (Help with PDF.)

April 2009 Webinar
- Presentation

January 2009
- Agenda
- Archived Webcast
- Meeting Summary
- Meeting Overview and Category 5M Approach
  – Charles Maguire and Andrew Sullivan, TCEQ
- Gulf of Mexico Alliance
  – Allison Jenkins, TCEQ
- Questions for TMDL Group
- Completed Questions from TMDL Group
- Questions for 5M Group
- Completed Questions from 5M Group
November 2008
- Agenda
- Archived Webcast (HTML)
- Meeting Transcript, morning
- Meeting Transcript, afternoon
- Recent Monitoring of Pollutants in Fish Tissue in Texas
  – Pat Bohannon, TCEQ
- TPWD Mercury Studies
  – Roxie Mills, TPWD
- Mercury Advisories
  – Michael Tennant, DSHS
- Texas Surface Water Quality Standards Revision
  – Debbie Miller, TCEQ
- Mercury Methylation in Water Bodies
  – Dr. Lynn Katz, UT Austin
  – Nate Johnson, UT Austin
- Mercury Sources, Transport, and Fate in the Atmosphere
  – Dr. Leonard Levin, Electric Power Research Institute
July 2008
- Meeting Agenda
- Archived Webcast (HTML)
- Meeting Transcript
- Fish Consumption Advisories
  – Kirk Wiles, DSHS
- Options for Addressing Mercury Impairments
  – Tom Weber, TCEQ
- Overview of Mercury in the Environment
  – Minor Hibbs, TCEQ

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Sign Up for News Alerts

Join the advisory group’s e-mail news list to receive updates whenever new items are posted on our web site.

Go the the entry subscription page for TCEQ news lists
Enter and confirm your e-mail address.
From the list of choices, look under “Advisory Groups” and select “Mercury-Impaired Waters Advisory Group.”
Select other subscriptions if you wish, then click “Save.”
Confirm your membership by following the instructions in an auto-generated e-mail that will be sent to you by the News system.

You may unsubscribe, change your e-mail address, or choose additional options at any time by returning to the TCEQ's entry subscription page.

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